Aladdin Jr. was performed in August of 2024. The next production of The Penguin Project at Altoona Community Theatre has not yet been announced.
Please call the ACT Office at 814-943-4357 or email act@altoonacommunitytheatre.com if you’re interested in getting your child involved as an Artist or a Mentor, or if you’re interested in becoming involved as a volunteer or sponsor.
Please join us at our holiday party on December 8th at 1 pm in the ACT rehearsal hall (1213 12th Street). It’s a great way to meet the parents and kids of the Penguin Project in a relaxed atmosphere. There will be food, dancing, karaoke, and we’ll be announcing the title of our 2025 production!
The Penguin Project at Altoona Community Theatre’s production of Aladdin Jr was made possible by a partnership with the Altoona Area School District; and grants from the Zack Hinish Foundation, UPMC Altoona, the Rotary Club of Altoona, Encompass Health Rehabilitation Hospital of Altoona, and the Central Pennsylvania Community Foundation; donations fro Ambucs of Altoona, Scissorhands Salon and individual donors like yourself. Please consider making a donation to help fund The Penguin Project at Altoona Community Theatre at the link below.
Thank you to the over 700 audience members who came to support our second Penguin Project production in August of 2024! You can see the kids shine by watching the recording of their performance below.
Interested in learning more about the Penguin Project and how to participate in our next production? Let us know by sending an email to act@altoonacommunitytheatre.com
The Penguin Project® is a National Foundation with chapters throughout the United States, and Altoona Community Theatre is proud to bring the project to central Pennsylvania. The goal of the project is to provide a supportive environment for children with disabilities to explore their creative talents.
The Foundation was created in 2004 by Dr. Andrew Morgan, Professor Emeritus of Clinical Pediatrics at the University of Illinois College of Medicine at Peoria. Through his work, Dr. Morgan realized how children with special needs and their families often lack opportunities for community activities, sometimes making them feel isolated. Participation in the performing arts has specific therapeutic value in enhancing socialization, communication skills, and self-esteem, so he conceived the Penguin Project as a way for special needs children to be involved in an enriching social and creative outlet where their needs can be accommodated.
Goals of The Penguin Project®
- To provide an opportunity for children with special needs to develop creative skills related to the theater arts
- To provide an opportunity for children with special needs to participate in a community theater experience
- To facilitate interaction between children with special needs and their age-level peers through joint participation in a community theater experience
- To facilitate an appreciation of the challenges faced by children with special needs and their families
- To identify the impact of a community theater experience on the communication skills, socialization, and self-confidence of children with special needs
- To facilitate interaction among medical, developmental, educational, and theater professionals through participation in a common community project
- To provide a forum for support and interaction for families of children with special needs